The owner of the Milwaukee Bucks has recommended that the head coach’s salary this month not be paid due to misunderstandings with two players.

The owner of the Milwaukee Bucks has recommended that the head coach’s salary this month not be paid due to misunderstandings with two players.

Paying one NBA head coach alone is prohibitively expensive. But following their most recent hire, the Bucks are now obligated to cover the wages of three coaches—not just one.

Doc Rivers took Adrian Griffin’s position after Milwaukee unexpectedly fired him earlier this week. Following his offseason replacement of Mike Budenholzer, Griffin led the team for just 43 games.

Rivers’ new deal implies that in 2024, the Bucks will be paying for three head coaches, but two of them will no longer be leading the team. Not only will it conclude after the 2023–24 season, but Milwaukee will still have Rivers, Griffin, and Budenholzer on staff the following season.

MORE: Previous stops for new Bucks HC Doc Rivers, coaching timeline

The Bucks’ compensation to each coach is shown here.

Document Rivers Agreement
Since the NBA withholds head coach compensation, finding their contracts might be difficult.

But according to a Thursday story by Shams Charania of The Athletic, Rivers’ Milwaukee contract is anticipated to be for about $40 million. Rivers’ deal runs until the 2026–2027 campaign.

Sources: Doc Rivers will become the head coach of the Bucks on a deal that is expected to be worth $40 million through the 2026–2027 season. For the following three and a half years, Milwaukee will be paying out former coaches Mike Budenholzer and Adrian Griffin as well as Rivers. Twitter photo TJNafNFms9

— @ShamsCharania Shams Charania 2024 January 25
Rivers is expected to make around $10 million annually over the course of the four seasons (actually three and a half, as he joined halfway through the 2023–24 season).

Contract for Adrian Griffin
Before the Griffin era in Milwaukee could truly get underway, it ended.

Before the front office decided to make a change, the 49-year-old had only coached 43 games. Even though he guided the club to a 30-13 record, there were several times of unrest in the locker room, such as the unannounced departure of assistant coach Terry Stotts prior to the regular season and a rumored altercation with Bobby Portis.

Griffin will still receive salary from the Bucks even if he won’t be coaching the team. Griffin will remain owed to Milwaukee until the 2026–2027 season, which is the same duration as Rivers’ new contract.

When Griffin was hired, The Athletic reported that his annual salary would be about $4 million. Thus, Milwaukee still owes Griffin an extra $12 million over the next three seasons.

Mike Budenholzer contract The Bucks’ first deal to expire will be his. That won’t happen, though, until following the 2024–25 season.

There was a lot of conjecture around Budenholzer’s job security after the Bucks fell in the opening round of the 2023 NBA playoffs. A few weeks later, he was let go.

According to Charania’s post-playoffs assessment, Budenholzer owed $16 million overall and had two years remaining on his deal.